The Strength to Smile
by RiverIsTheMagicWord
Summary: Takes place during 'The Titanium Ninja', from Zane's POV. Zane is the only ninja free from the Overlord's grasp, and uses this advantage to sacrifice himself to save his brothers, his Sensei, and all of Ninjago. Pain like he has never known courses through his body as he grabs hold of the Golden Armor, and his deepest fears and thoughts surface in his mind as he feels himself die.


"The armor! Why isn't it working?" Cole demanded, desperation coloring his tone.

I watched helplessly as my brothers and my Sensei were snagged by the Overlord's vicious golden appendages. They struggled valiantly in our enemy's grasp, but I knew it was no use.

"Because your time is _over_!" the Overlord shrieked triumphantly.

One of his reaching weaves of power stretched impossibly closer to me, and I barely managed to avoid its searching grip.

My friends were caught. They were trapped in the grasp of our adversary, and Ninjago would fall if none of us could stop him. Even the legendary Green Ninja was incapacitated, futilely writhing amidst the Overlord's overwhelming might.

My servos raced to come up with a plausible solution. There had to be a way to stop this evil being. There just _had_ to be.

And there was.

My mind froze as I understood exactly what needed to be done. I hadn't expected the solution to be a simple one, or a painless one at that

Nevertheless, I felt fear. Real fear coursed through my circuitry, overheating my stressed power source.

I forced myself to quiet my mind.

It had to be done. I wanted my brothers safe. They were needed, to protect Ninjago from future threats.

They could go on without me.

With such a thought at the forefront of my mind, I pulled down the white _tenugui_ on my ninja gi. "Support me, friends," I asked my brothers solemnly. "For one last time."

They didn't hear my last few words. They didn't know what I was about to do. Yet, they were my team, my most trusted companions, and so they listened to my initial request and followed through without hesitation.

As I leapt from brother to brother, I allowed myself to ponder their significance in my life.

First was Jay. Sporadic and loud, but deep down, the most loyal person I had ever met. He had the purest of heart and the kindest of smiles. Quicker to the word than the sword, Jay had been intent on helping me understand human customs upon my arrival at the monastery, before I had even known that I was a nindroid. And, who could forget, it was my fearless blue brother that had come up with that exact term for me.

I leapt from Jay's outstretched hands and said a silent goodbye to my dear brother in my head.

Next was Cole. Our leader, before Lloyd's christening as the prophesied Green Ninja. He was sturdy and reliable, much like his element. The Master of Earth was my good friend. He had accepted me into his life and into his world when I had first arrived at the monastery. I could ask for nothing more.

I launched myself off of Cole's overturned feet and landed promptly on my next beloved teammate.

Lloyd, the Chosen One. Original defeater of the Overlord. The beast had come back through no fault of Lloyd's, and I would always see the green ninja as my littlest sibling no matter how much more he aged. I was much older than all of my brothers anyway. He was innocent, strong, and fearless, and I loved him fiercely. I would always hold his remaining childish quirks close to my heart.

I bounded away from my youngest brother, executing a flip midair to avoid another desperate jab from the Overlord. I landed directly onto Kai, who held me up effortlessly.

The Master of Fire was exactly that, with a level of recklessness that rivaled anyone else's. His temper was great, but his heart and devotion were greater. He had been quick to remind me that no matter what, I was still his brother, even though he had been met with the shocking truth that I was far from human. In fact, he had once told me that he found me to be more human than any of us. I appreciated his comforting words to a degree he would never understand, and cared for him deeply.

I soared past Garmadon as I launched off of Kai's feet, and remembered him as my newest Sensei, who always had a wise word to tell, though he had suffered much.

I nearly lost my balance as I descended onto the hands of my Sensei, Wu. I was rapidly losing my courage, but forced myself to keep going.

All of Ninjago was counting on me.

My original Sensei was wise and caring, and I revered his teachings. He had been my father figure, and continued to be, even after I rediscovered my own true father.

My father had built me to protect those who could not protect themselves, and I was not about to fail my true objective.

While my father had been my family, I already had one, through my brothers and my Sensei.

I would miss them terribly.

With something of a terrified battle cry, I flew towards the massive face of my enemy, reaching out to grab a hold of the edges of his Golden Armor.

I was expecting it to hurt.

I was not expecting it to tear me apart, inside and outside.

White hot agony like I had never known flooded my processors, which struggled to comprehend the level of pain I was in.

"Let my friends go!" I managed to spit out, my voice cracking with the effort of saying such a simple sentence.

"Go where, doomed ninja?" the Overlord cackled.

His words did not affect me.

I had known I was doomed the second I had latched on to the reformed gold that was the destroyed Golden Weapons.

I had known I was doomed the second I had decided to save my family.

I had known I was doomed the minute the Overlord had returned.

A piece of my faceplate cracked off and spiraled down towards the vacant streets below.

That piece had always been exceptionally difficult to keep fastened in place, ever since the battle with the Great Devourer, so many years ago.

"The Golden Weapons are too powerful for you to behold! Your survival chance is zero!" my adversary continued, looking immensely pleased with himself.

My mind flitted back to what Kai had said earlier.

"This isn't about numbers," I gasped out. "It's about family."

Everything inside of me screamed at me to let go, to stop the coursing currents of agony that were churning in my wires and gears.

I fought back at the enraged voices, desperately attempting to block a solitary thought that demanded I give up. It shrieked at me to quit.

Dimly, I registered in the back of mind that my family was free from the Overlord's golden grip. They were shouting things at me. Things I couldn't quite make out.

The terrible thought of quitting clambered for attention in my hard-wired power source, screeching for fulfillment as my single unit of intense power began to overload.

"I am a nindroid!" I roared, at my own debilitating thoughts as well as towards my enemy. "And ninja _never_ quit!"

With that one sentence, I knew my fate was sealed.

"Go ninja GO!" I screamed, and let go of the Golden Armor. For a brief second, blissful relief accompanied my detachment. I countered the sweet moment of respite by throwing everything I had at the Overlord.

Ice poured from every part of me. It shot from my outstretched hands directly into the chest of my foe, and exploded from my power source in brilliant bursts of white shards.

I could now distinctly hear the anguished cries of my brothers echoing in the background. They were safe, and the thought comforted me.

 _You'll be okay without me…_

They didn't need me in order to be a great team.

The Overlord was yelling incomprehensible protests at me, and I felt a painful thrill race through me. He was dying, and I was the cause of his demise this time.

Encouraged, I unleashed a second volley of ice directly at my enemy, freezing his Golden Armor and forcing it to crack and splinter under my furious attack.

My own form was also diminishing under my fierce assault, and the fear of death once again made my breath catch.

I was going to die. I was going to _die_.

Dying very much hurt.

Vibrant memories of my life with my new family entered my mind, and I held on to them as the overwhelming terror I felt clawed at my insides.

I remembered their acceptance of me. I remembered unlocking my true potential, of finding out about and accepting my past, of enduring trials with my brothers and discovering the falcon. I recalled my last few months with my very much alive father, and of his parting words to me.

 _"You were built to protect those who cannot protect themselves."_

I remembered Wu's own words, and felt their significance combat my growing pain and terror.

 _"There's something special about you Zane."_

I _was_ special. I _was_ important. And I was doing what I was built for.

My power source roared in agony and abruptly collapsed.

As my internal source monitor flatlined, I felt myself falling through the freezing air.

The Overlord's furious scream of defeat echoed in my audio sensors as they shut down.

My limbs were the next to go, and they went numb as their connective wires fizzled and sputtered into useless, burned scrap.

It was so surreal, feeling my body die.

But it was the thought of my family, and the thought of having kept them safe, that gave me the strength to smile as my mind was the last thing to go.

* * *

 **I was listening to 'Built to Protect' by Jay Vincent, because, for some reason, I enjoy torturing myself. Anyway, I was having some serious 'The Titanium Ninja' feels due to that, so I wrote this one-shot regarding Zane's thoughts about sacrificing himself for everyone.**


End file.
